A public repentance

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

As many of you know, sometime in June I posted a blog that caused some anguish to my readers, especially those from Mount Zion and the session there…though the church was not named. The leadership there as well as another colleague in ministry, strongly voiced their complaints. Since that time I have written a pained appeal to my Presbytery. What I have written to the members of the Presbytery needs to be covered by this post as well and I will send it out to them via the proper channels.

I have been called to repentance for posting the blog. I refused. More than once.

This morning, on the way to work, a podcast came up on my playlist. I have linked it here in case you’d like to listen or read the whole: https://www.ccef.org/in-defense-of-something-close-to-venting/ I highly recommend it). For now, I quote it in part here.

Though the Scriptures provide us with permission to participate in something close to venting, it also offers plenty of cautions related to the use of our words, especially in conversation with others. This caution reminds us to align our words with God’s kingdom purposes of building others up and encouraging their hearts and minds.

• James 3 reminds us of the dangers of excessive words and the power of an untamed tongue.

• Proverbs 10:19 cautions us that “When words are many, transgression is not lacking.”

• Proverbs 13:3 encourages us to hedge the impulse to speak, as it highlights that “Whoever guards his mouth preserves his life; he who opens wide his lips comes to ruin.”

• And finally, Ephesians 4:29 admonishes us to “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.”

The Scriptures permit and provide space for expression and honest sharing, at the same time as it fences and limits this permissive space regarding the contents of our speech and the nature of our words.

Todd Stryd, November 1, 2021

When you look at the date of Stryd’s post, you’ll see it is from about four years ago. It shouldn’t be on my playlist now; but there it was. Randomly, or better, by good providence, it popped into the playlist at just the moment the soil of my heart was softened enough to hear and receive. Though several men had appealed to me to remove the post (which I did) they also appealed to me to repent. Which I did not. Until now.

After listening to this podcast, from someone who, so to speak, doesn’t have an iron in the fire, I realized:

1. My words were untamed. I repent of that to all within reach of this blog.

2. My words were many, and I repent of that to all within reach of this blog

3. I did not stop the impulse to speak, when fairer words could have been used, or, more appropriately, better channels for these words. I repent of that.

4. I realize these words were harmful—while I intended to bring an important matter to light, it was not done in a way that was healing, helpful or promoting a solution. I heartily repent of that.

If you do not know what this refers to, all the better. Disregard my part of this blog, while at the same time taking the warning for the future to consider all your words and when you vent, be cautious how you vent.

Shalom. Richard

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

September 16, 2025 -- I John 1:5-10 -- Confession: sin-breaking power

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
I John 1:5-10 ESV
 
A man at one of the federal institutions where I visit and lead bible studies joyfully announced to the group he is finally 30 days sober. (Yes, you read that correctly. It is quite possible to get mind altering substances inside the prison.) His confession was truly a reason to rejoice. He felt simultaneously terrible and joyful. He was ashamed of himself, embarrassed how this impacts his testimony and his walk with God, but he is also thankful for these 30 days of sobriety.
 
This letter from John sets the tone for the exploration of the latter part of the letter, where he warns his readers against sin. Here, before exploring the impulses to sin and the false loves which infect our heart, he reminds the believers that God is light. Those who have fellowship with Jesus will walk in the light of life. The Spirit will shine the light of the bible and present Christ—Who is the light of life—into our hearts and reveal all areas of unconfessed sin, strongholds of sin, patterns of sin, and that tricky, persistent root of pride. All wicked words, rebellious actions, secret wrongful activities which we would want to hide from others will be exposed by word of God and the Spirit of God. There are two options: confess that sin (even though that seems counter-intuitive and hard to do) and experience the healing grace of Jesus through whose blood we are cleansed from all our sins. The other option is to act as if we have no sin. Nothing to repent of. No unrighteousness. There are justifications. There are excuses. But it is a way of darkness and is a direct path away from God.
 
From the very start of the letter, John is reassuring his readers, those who experience the same chaotic tumult and tugs towards sin that all of us do, that in Jesus Christ there is forgiveness that is full and free. Sin will either hold us down, capturing us and rebinding us back into slavery unto it, or sin will be confessed and its power of it will be broken by the grace of Jesus Christ.
 
What do you need to confess?
 
To whom will you confess your sin so that you have a witness to both the healing power of God and a person who can hold you to account for the re-commitment you have made to walk in holiness? The man who confessed his 30 days of sobriety in the prison did so in the context of a Christian twelve-step group called Overcomers. The guys in that group were very affirming and one or two were very ready to help him stay true to his promise.
 
To whom will you confess your sins so that you can rebuild once again the deep fellowship you had with God, restore fellowship with other believers and experience the true peace that comes from a forgiven heart? Temptation to wickedness and evil lead us to isolate ourselves (Proverbs 18:1)—we know we are doing wrong and we try to hide. However, confession is the wide-open door to freedom and life.
    
  Eternal Father,
  Thou art good beyond all thought,
But I am vile, wretched, miserable, blind lips are ready to confess,
but my heart is slow to feel, and my ways reluctant to amend.
I bring my soul to thee; break it, wound it, bend it, mould it.
Unmask to me sin’s deformity, that I may
hate it, abhor it, flee from it.
My faculties have been a weapon of revolt against thee;
as a rebel I have misused my strength,
and served the foul adversary of thy kingdom.
Give me grace to bewail my insensate folly,
Grant me to know that the way of transgressors is hard,
that evil paths are wretched paths,
that to depart from thee is to lose all good.
I have seen the purity and beauty of thy perfect law,
the happiness of those in whose heart it reigns,
the calm dignity of the walk to which it calls,
yet I daily violate and contemn its precepts.
Thy loving Spirit strives within me,
brings me Scripture warnings, speaks in startling providences,
allures by secret whispers, yet I choose devices and desires to my own hurt,
impiously resent, grieve, and provoke him to abandon me.
All these sins I mourn, lament, and for them cry pardon.
Work in me more profound and abiding repentance;
Give me the fullness of a godly grief that trembles and fears,
yet ever trusts and loves, which is ever powerful, and ever confident;
Grant that through the tears of repentance I may see more clearly
The brightness and glories of the saving cross.
From: Valley of Vision, “Yet I Sin”
 
https://youtu.be/TxC16duiHvQ?si=lVKJ7Y26aovHcijC O Lord, My Rock and My Redeemer
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

September 14, 2025 -- Matthew 5:3 -- God's will ruling in your life

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.                  Matthew 5:3 ESV
 
What is the blessing that is given to those who are poor in spirit? They are given the kingdom of heaven. When the Father gifts us to the Son as trophies celebrating Jesus’ accomplished work, we are part of the Kingdom of Jesus. Sin no longer has mastery over us. I have been reading Gabor Maté’s book: “In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts close encounters with addiction.” Maté wrote:
Addiction is a complex condition, a complex interaction between
human beings and their environment. We need to view it simultaneously
from many different angles—or, at least, while examining it from
one angle, we need to keep others in mind. Addiction has biological,
chemical, neurological, psychological, medical, emotional, social,
political, economic and spiritual underpinnings— and perhaps
others I haven’t thought about.” Maté, page 129.
When we were locked in the kingdom of darkness, our sins were instinctive, unchallenged. We may have pretended to be in charge, wildly, incoherently trying to control sinful impulses, while riding waves of urges, but we willingly deluded ourselves and justified the next hit of sin. Even while we are in the Kingdom of Heaven, under the reign of Jesus, it is all together too easy to justify sins and go back to old, familiar patterns of rebellion against God. But to be in the Kingdom of Heaven, to be a citizen, is to experience now, the blessing Jesus Christ. He has fully paid for all our sins. We have the holy boldness to be honest about our failures and rebelliousness. What happens now is the Holy Spirit unblocks the brain which was once conditioned to follow through almost unconsciously and instantaneously in old patterns of sin. The Holy Spirit intervenes so that between the urge of temptation and what used to be an immediate obedience to it in acting it out, there is now a holy space, a pause. The Spirit-given opportunity to consider the fact we are a new creation in Christ and sin no longer rules us. We are under the authority of our King, and it is His will we are called to obey.
 
Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Father in heaven, by Your Spirit’s presence in me, let Your will be done in my life and let Your commands rule in the deep places of my soul and mind, those places where desires to act are formed. Spirit purge impious urges and sift out unholy patterns so that in the newly formed holy space where formerly immediate sinful actions ruled, these are now paused, thrown down, so that I now have the ability to reach for and act on the newly implanted desire to be obedient to Jesus—the holy high priest by whose blood I am freed from the wrath of God—my King. Amen.
 
https://youtu.be/nGlPk7Vzy2M?si=AcFqTAOnui3rvBJg The Lord’s Prayer
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

September 11, 2025 -- Proverbs 11:27 -- Ask yourself, "What am I pursuing?"

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Whoever diligently seeks good seeks favor,
but evil comes to him who searches for it.
Proverbs 11:27 ESV
 
What harm can there be in doom scrolling? What harm could there be in that second, lustful look? What harm in hanging out with folks who you know are a bad influence, but are fun to be around? What is the problem with video gaming? Why does it matter if my girlfriend isn’t a Christian, I mean, she says she’s spiritual? I know my body is a temple, but what is the big deal about being overweight, or not really counting calories? Why is shopping and how I spend my money such a big deal? When I have free time, why can’t I spend it the way I want doing what I want to do?
 
No doubt many of the above questions don’t touch on any area of your life where there might be an issue of obedience. I’ll hazard a guess though; there are one or two that hit home. The passage in focus today speaks of a diligent search for good versus the fact that evil approaches freely, ingratiating itself into the life of the one who is not persistently seeking what is good.
 
Evil is lurking nearby. The devil is organized in his attacks. He is patient, crouching at the door seeking an opportunity to attack you unaware. Your mind and your desires are not naturally inclined toward God. You are naturally inclined toward sin. Even the Christian who is devoted to Jesus realizes how persistent and sinister evil is. However, the faithful follower of Jesus realizes that to fight the sin lingering within, he must actively seek good. The one who claims to be spiritual, a devotee to God the Almighty, must intentionally when things are going well and with renewed vigor and focus, especially when things seem to be going badly, diligently seek God.
 
Each way of living yields a result. The one who is not actively pursuing God, even if all he claims is neutrality, that person will be caught up in the evil that approaches him. Evil is looking for any invitation, any small crack of inattention in one’s determination to pursue God. However, the one who is patiently, actively, daily planning to do good and seek for God has this great promise: he is in fact seeking God. The promise of the New Testament is that God is the source of every good (James 1:17). The search for good yields the rich reward of fullness of life with God the Father, through the blessed work of Jesus Christ, and this holy feedback loop is empowered by the Holy Spirit Who lives in you. Dear reader, what are you seeking?
 
Faithful Father, source of all good, in the strength of the Holy Spirit living in me, increase my desire to plan and execute the decision of seeking good. As You have so graciously promised, let me truly seek You with all my heart, soul, and mind. Amen.
 
https://youtu.be/4-GM9w6IA2M?si=k24-86ubbPT0gfvR “How Deep the Father’s Love for Us”
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

September 9, 2025 -- Matthew 4:17 -- Do Christians Repent? What is repentance?

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
Matthew 4:17 ESV
 
Jesus preached the gospel of repentance having Himself just resisted the power of the devil for forty days and forty nights. Jesus, in His humanity, knew how terrible and persistent, subtle and powerful, the enemy is. He, Who resisted to the very core of His being, and continued to resist the onslaught of the devil, knew the people to whom He ministered needed His healing. He knew they needed to be released from the curse of sin and death. He knew the might of the devil which seemed unbreakable—unbreakable that is, until at His presence the light dawned. At His presence darkness flees. At the opening of His mouth, the sun of righteousness brought light that dispelled the darkness. As the sun of righteousness preached, there was healing in His wings.
 
The call to repentance is the sign that the light of Christ has taken hold of your heart. A Christian puts down his cigarette. A Christian turns off pornography. A Christian disciplines his tongue not to blaspheme or swear, but instead to be used to please God. Listen carefully here, he turns from sin because the light of Christ frees him or her from bondage to sin and sets the course of his life towards holiness. The life of the Christian is constant repentance. Listen to these words by John Chrysostom (lived 357-407) was a famous preacher and teacher:
“Be ashamed when you sin,
don’t be ashamed when you repent –
Sin is the wound, repentance is the medicine.
Sin is followed by shame;
repentance is followed by boldness
Satan has overturned this order
and given boldness to sin and shame to repentance.”
St. John Chrystostom, AD 357-407
 
When the light of Jesus Christ appears within you, and the light grows as it does with the day, always increasing in brightness and intensity as the day progresses, so it is with the light of Christ. He preaches. The Light penetrates our thoughts and minds, and we confess what we now see as wicked and evil. We hate our sin more. We realize the source of the impulses to old patterns of sin and root them out.
 
Father in heaven thank You for the light of Christ which shines through every page of Scripture. Thank You for the gift of the Holy Spirit through Whom we have the strength to repent and the holy impulse to live according to the light of Christ. Triune God when we sin increase our shame at it so that we will with holy boldness repent. As Christians who live a life of on-going repentance, may our life in Christ draw in others, men and women who are being choked by sin and are chained in darkness, so they too will come to Jesus to receive the glorious, healing freedom which Jesus brings. Amen
 
https://youtu.be/CmNXeReZqAg?si=NoSZOdjbfULc9Xwh Be Still My Soul
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

September 8, 2025 -- Ephesians 4:1 -- Walking as one who is devoted to Jesus

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~hear and obey Jesus!

I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called…
Ephesians 4:1 ESV
 
The main thrust of this command is to walk (that is to act and talk) in a manner worthy of your calling. Since you profess Jesus Christ as the Lord of your life, your calling is to obey Him in everything. Sometimes, when I am speaking with Christians, they will ask me if an activity is okay. They know they’re looking to get away with something rather than going as far as possible into devoted service to Jesus. Imagine this, you are married. You profess to love your wife, you say to her, “Sweetheart, full disclosure, when we’re at the beach, I am going to ogle other women. Don’t be offended. It is not like I am going to do anything but stare.” If you are dumb enough to say this to your wife, I hope there aren’t any frying pans handy. No doubt you’ll get a swing upside the head. It is unacceptable behaviour. You know it.
 
When a believer claims Jesus as His Savior and King, he vows he will be devoted to Him, as devoted as a man in love with his wife is devoted to her. Sure, there are moments, maybe even days, when a husband is irritated with his wife, but he knows to act on his irritation rather than on his confession of love for her will cause additional harms and problems. It is the reason Ephesians depicts the Church as the Bride of Christ. As a bride devotes herself to her husband, so lovingly and intentionally do believers devote themselves to Jesus.
 
Glorious God, You are the faithful Father and the source of all good in our lives. Help us to walk in a manner worthy of our calling so that we do not seek compromises or technicalities by which we might try to justify our ogling of sinful ways. By Your Spirit’s powerful presence within, stir in us both the desire and strength to honour Jesus in our thoughts, words and actions. As we live out loud for Jesus, may others be drawn to the light of Christ that shines from us. Amen.
 
https://youtu.be/e5Hy_eRmjqo?si=Kwe8QgNgW7AEx_l1 Be Thou My Vision
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

September 7, 2025 -- Exodus 35:21-25 & 36:5 -- The Vision

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

And they came, everyone whose heart stirred him, and everyone whose spirit moved him, and brought the Lord's contribution to be used for the tent of meeting, and for all its service, and for the holy garments. 22 So they came, both men and women. All who were of a willing heart brought brooches and earrings and signet rings and armlets, all sorts of gold objects, every man dedicating an offering of gold to the Lord. 23 And every one who possessed blue or purple or scarlet yarns or fine linen or goats' hair or tanned rams' skins or goatskins brought them. 24 Everyone who could make a contribution of silver or bronze brought it as the Lord's contribution. And every one who possessed acacia wood of any use in the work brought it.
Exodus 35:21-24 ESV
[the craftsmen] said to Moses, “The people bring much more than enough for doing the work that the Lord has commanded us to do.” Exodus 36:5 ESV
 
It is embarrassing to me to see how often churches host bake sales and rummage sales and dinner theatres so that they can raise enough money for the basics needed to keep a local church functioning. Both here, and then in Acts 2 at Pentecost as the 120 received about 3,000 new believers, the people contributed so generously there was plenty for the work that needed to be done.
 
The question is this: are we are believers giving sacrificially? Are we giving out of the abundance with which God has blessed us? Generous giving to God should impact our life-style. It should change our standard of living so that we keep our eye on the prize of Jesus Christ and our hearts are laser focused on the goal of bringing the good news of His salvation to every corner of the globe. The Fraser Institute’s 2022 Generosity in Canada Index noted that Canada’s charitable giving was at a historic low (this was published in August 2023). You can find surveys and historical information that shows during the Great Depression Canadians gave a greater percentage of their income to charitable causes than they do today. Why?
 
Perhaps Canadians are less Christian. Perhaps Christian Canadians have taken on more the cultural values which focus on self-interest and worldly goals. Perhaps Christians have lost the glorious sense that the task of the church is to declare the Name of Jesus Christ to every Canadian and outward from there to every corner of the globe.
 
Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Forgive us for the ways in which we hoard our treasures and have become more worldly with our finances. Spirit of God, lead us to be generous with all the resources You have given us so that the Blessed Name of Jesus will be broadcast near and far. Oh, stir in us a longing to see the glory of the LORD cover earth as the waters cover the sea. Amen.
 
https://youtu.be/05jKxv8ApuI?si=4_KKeSXS3-PAL4WG My worth is not in what I own
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

September 6, 2025 -- Psalm 13:1 -- Praying when one's heart is broken

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever?                           
Psalm 13:1 ESV
 
There are times when I can speak with men on the inside, and when they feel safe enough to share, make statements like this: “I feel like God is distant”. Or they’ll say, “I am so alone. Is God here?” Then they’ll look at me, questioningly. Having been vulnerable enough to share this, they wonder, will Richard reject me for sharing this?
 
Blessed be our God and Savior! He has gifted us with the Psalms. These prayers capture the honest upheavals, the troubles, and the ranges of emotions with which each of us grapples. What the men were afraid to express has been put into words many centuries ago. David, called a man after God’s own heart (I Samuel 13:14), experienced times of such profound separation from God that he cried out with these words. The Spirit of God, ever gracious and the comforter of believers, preserved these words so that believers in all ages, know they have the freedom to pour out their hearts to God.
 

• Sometimes such devastating separation from God lasts a season. Do not give up. Pray this whole psalm.

• Sometimes the pain which wrenches these words from the soul and lips is brief and intense, pray this psalm with the confidence the LORD hears.

• Sometimes the tidal wave of troubles and griefs are so great, words fail, pray this psalm.

 
Trust that God has appointed these words, so long ago, for His saints through-out the ages. He has offered them to you so that you can walk in wholeness before Him. Not pretending. Not saying fine when everything is a mess. But honesty, with vulnerability bare your circumstances, your heart and your pain to Him knowing He will hear you. In another Psalm, the promise is that God will not despise a broken heart (Psalm 51:17).

How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?
    How long will you hide your face from me?
2 How long must I take counsel in my soul
    and have sorrow in my heart all the day?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?
3 Consider and answer me, O Lord my God;
    light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death,
4 lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,”
    lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken.
5 But I have trusted in your steadfast love;
    my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
6 I will sing to the Lord,
    because he has dealt bountifully with me.
Psalm 13 ESV
https://youtu.be/QcGGlBHxTfk?si=f1fV8QQtBLfy8K1S Hear Our Prayer, O Lord
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

September 3, 2025 -- Ephesians 5:18 -- Be filled with the Spirit

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

…be filled with the Spirit
Ephesians 5:18 ESV
 
Leading a Bible study through Ephesians has been a great blessing. Sinclair Ferguson’s “Let’s Study Ephesians” has been the guide to help unpack the letter. He comments that the verb, be filled, is in the present tense. Meaning the filling of the Holy Spirit is to be an on-going action in our lives. It is also an imperative, a command. Noting that before knowing Christ our lives were lived according to the imperatives and commands of the flesh; now it is the Spirit of God Who commands believers. Finally, to be filled with the Spirit is a gift. What God commands He also supplies. There are many implications to this understanding of the simple present tense, command and promise.
 
Believers are to read the word, as it is through the Bible that believers are aware of the Spirit’s work. As one reads it is the Spirit Who makes the Bible clear. In its pages believers have their sins exposed and their deep, constant need for Christ revealed. The Spirit is the gift given by Whom believers can cry out to God as Father and cy out to Jesus as Lord and their Captain of Salvation. Believers cry out to God for more of the Spirit—whereas in the past drunkenness and debauchery, sins which always cried more, give, feed my lusts—now the believer, renewed and purified is constantly and insatiably seeking more of the Spirit.
 
This is a clear warning not to toy with old sins. The former vices of drunkenness (which is anything that causes one to lose control: like alcohol, or gaming, or gambling, or drugs, or pills, or shopping) and debauchery (which is losing control to sexual vices and sins and lusts) can easily reassert themselves. My former pastor used to say, “My old nature with its sinful patterns, was drowned at my baptism, but he is a surprisingly strong swimmer and keeps popping up again”. Our old nature is surprisingly buoyant. Our new Spirit-filled mind and soul are given power so that old sins can be vanquished as often as they reappear. The fact that you hate your old sins and desire them to be put to death are signs that the Spirit of God is filling you and directing you. Dear Christian, pray for more of the Spirit’s presence and work in your life.
 
Father in heaven, thank You for the wonderful gift of the Holy Spirit. Through Your Spirit’s powerful presence we can cry out to You, “Abba, Father” with the full assurance You have adopted us as Your own beloved sons and daughters through Jesus. Thank You for the Spirit by Whom we are sealed into Christ and know Him as the Captain of Salvation. Triune God, we confess how powerful, demanding and persistent our old sins are. So, we plead, fill us with the Spirit so that old lusts and longings are replaced with the overwhelming desire for more of Jesus and more abundant life in Him. Amen.
 
https://youtu.be/dHLikbLXQ8E?si=I4T8XqrYLyOdRY3t Not What These Hands Have Done
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

September 1, 2025 -- Matthew 4:11 -- Angels Ministered

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.
Matthew 4:11 ESV
 
After forty days and nights of fasting in the wilderness, and being tempted by the devil, the end of those days culminated in the three temptations recorded by Matthew. Only after all those assaults did the devil leave Jesus. Jesus had withstood each and everyone of the temptations without the slightest compromise or complaint. Luke noted that the devil left Jesus until an opportune time (Luke 4:13). The wily enemy is ever lurking nearby, and he is restless evil. Notice the mercy of our Father in heaven. To His exhausted Son the Father sent His ministering angels.
 
It is important to note the angels did not fight Jesus’ battles. He battled the devil without their interference. But the pattern is well-established in Scripture. After hard battle, there is rest and refreshment given by the Father. While we don’t know what the angels did, how they ministered, Spurgeon speculated they were a loving, familiar presence. He likens it to a sermon you hear that is greatly comforting. I recently experienced something like that.
 
I remember a few weeks ago I was at Teen Challenge, preparing to lead a Bible Study. The Director of TC so kindly approached me and asked me in a way and tone that was so obviously caring, “Are you okay?” He is safe. He knows the challenges, joys and sorrows of working with those who are battling addictions. I said, “My heart is weary because of my circumstances, but my soul rejoices in the Lord.” He knew exactly what I meant. He offered me a coffee chat. We met up and it was obvious that the angels of the Lord had been sent. We had an hour and a half of uninterrupted time to talk and pray. No emergencies that needed to be dealt with, just time for two brothers in the Lord to have an opportunity to spend time together. It was heaven-sent.
 
As Jesus, Who when He walked the earth was as fully human as you, was ministered to by angels, trust that our Father in heaven commands His angels concerning you. Trust that at precisely the right moment you will be encouraged by a phone call, a card, a text, a circumstance that is heaven-sent. It is quite possible that you will be the heaven-sent person to meet with someone else, a blessing sent by the Father, and the time you spend is angel-guarded so that you can administer God’s blessing to the one in need.
 
Father in heaven, forever blessed is Your Name. Great are You in majesty and power, and You are kind and compassionate in all Your dealings with Your people. Thank You for the illustration of Jesus Christ, the final Adam, receiving the ministry of angels. Thank You faithful Father, that You will provide precisely what is needed, so that in all circumstances, trials and refreshments, Your people will be led to maturity in Christ. Thank You for the powerful work of the Spirit within, and the ministering angels all around. Amen.
 
https://youtu.be/tQUTvMtUhw4?si=3oaaSpovYj6vm5vM The Doxology
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

August 31, 2025 -- Proverbs 31:1-2 -- Growing up tutored by wisdom

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

The words of King Lemuel. An oracle that his mother taught him:
What are you doing, my son? What are you doing, son of my womb?
What are you doing, son of my vows?  Proverbs 31:1-2 ESV
 
A series of questions; what a strange way to begin this chapter of Proverbs. Chapter divisions are artificial, not inserted in the Bible until the 1300’s. So, originally, the Proverbs didn’t have these divisions. There’d be headings, like what is counted as verse 1 in today’s reading, but the point is, what is now chapter 31 would stand as the summary of the whole book of wisdom. The King's mother is obviously a woman of wisdom, who has raised her child in God's way.
 
King Lemuel's godly mother called on her son, from his youth onwards, to evaluate his steps, his words and his way of life. For however long he lived a son in her household, she influenced him, taught him and showed Him the glories of God. Are you, fathers and mothers, constantly attentive to your children so that they are raised in the of the LORD? Are you, fellow church members, attentive to the toddlers and youth in the church so they are part of a whole community that is invested in the others, and supportive in the ways of holiness?
 
The repetition of the question is emphatic. To the question she adds the phrase “son of my womb”. Wisdom, depicted as a woman through-out the Proverbs, is now a mother commanding her son to live in the way of wisdom. Wisdom is intimate. It is familial. It affects the interactions between the family members. It is a way of justice. Are you, fathers and mothers, fellow members of the community of faith, like Eunice and Lois, faithful mothers and grandmothers, keenly and persistently and for the full eighteen years of their youth, guiding in the way of holiness?
 
Now the repetition is superlative and to it is added the phrase “son of my vows”. He is a covenant child. He is born into a marriage where a father and a mother both invest their time, efforts and love so that a son is raised to know the LORD and live wisdom. A son of a mother’s vows is warned against the way of prostitutes—women of folly—who through-out this book are those who intentionally and with malice seek to lead godly men from the path of holiness to the way of destruction. A godly marriage is a good example for a child, so that he grows up with this blessed model of holiness before his eyes. Are you, fathers and mothers, fellow members of the believing community, upholding the importance of marriage vows, of holiness in singleness? Are you providing such fellowship and sweet community that single or married, widowed or widower, young or old, all have an important place in the covenant community which belongs to God by covenant vows?
 
Going to church is more than something for you to do as an individual. Going to church means meeting with the people of God, enjoying fellowship, discipling others, welcoming prodigals, encouraging the weak, giving of yourself in holy sacrifice so that together, by the work of the Spirit, each member grows, maturing in Christ, and this to the glory of God the Father. Get to church. Get involved. Get connected with others. Encourage those around you. Pray specifically for the ones who are in need.
 
Father in heaven, forgive us for the times we delighted to be Your son or daughter, but did not acknowledge those, who by the same grace given in Jesus Christ, are our dear brothers and sisters. Forgive us dearest Father, for the radical individuality which greedily welcomes Your blessings into our own lives, but neglects to share such blessings with those who beside us and near us, are also cleansed by the healing blood of Jesus. Spirit of the Living God, lead us in holy boldness to welcome one another in Christ. Spirit of wisdom give us tender hearts so that we attend to the needs of those around us, or, are prepared ourselves to be humble, vulnerable and open to the ministry we might receive from those You have purposefully put into our pathway. Amen.
 
https://youtu.be/oEUskp1e2bg?si=2tVPS_fg7rXTNXhj By Faith
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

August 30, 2025 -- Revelation 19:1b-2a -- The Boldness Needed to Face our World

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Hallelujah!
Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,
for his judgments are true and just…
Revelation 19:1b-2a ESV
 
This vision found in Revelation is recorded by John, the disciple of Jesus. He is an old man and experiencing persecution. By way of great encouragement, the Spirit of God gave John a vision of what is happening and what is to come. The Judgment Day will come.

Thomas Boston, in his work, Human Nature in Its Fourfold State, speaks of this final judgment
 O! What a strange turn of affairs will appear here! What an astonishing
sight will it be, to see wicked churchmen and statesmen standing as
criminals before the saints whom formerly they condemned as heretics,
rebels, and traitors! To see men of riches and power stand pale-faced
before those whom they oppressed! To see the mocker stand trembling
before those whom he mocked! the worldly-wise man, before the those
whom he accounted fools! Then shall the despised faces of the saints
be dreadful faces to the wicked; and those, who sometimes were the song
of drunkards, shall then be a terror to them. All wrongs must be righted
at length, and every one set in his proper place.
Thomas Boston, Human Nature in Its Fourfold State. East Peoria, IL:,
Versa Press, Inc., reprinted 2015, page 419
 
When believers meditate on the accomplished work of Jesus, and know at the appointed time of their death, they will face judgment for every word spoken, every deed done and every good deed they knew they were supposed to do but left undone, what a terror that will be. It means believers are led by a holy fear of God, to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with God. The unbeliever, the mocker, the worldly-wise—what a terror awaits them! No wonder Christians do, with fervency and urgency pray for our neighbours. The Premier of Quebec has been widely quoted as saying “No one wants to see public prayer in the streets of Quebec”^ A bill to make Quebec even more restrictively secular is in the works. May God have mercy on the souls of those puny persons who so wickedly imagine they can work against His great Name. May Christians in Quebec know the love of Christ as they are prayed for by Jesus Himself, and Christians across Canada and the world. Give to the believers in Quebec, and to us all, the boldness and Spirit-fueled persistence to serve our gracious God and King.
 
O LORD, Just and True are all Your ways. Perfect and righteous are Your judgments. Have mercy on our Christian brothers and sisters in Quebec who face even greater government led persecution and restrictive policies. Give us, as Canadians, a holy boldness to witness wherever You have placed us, so that Your Great Name will be known, celebrated and adored. As believers reading such reports, Spirit of the Living God, give us a holy fear of the LORD and a righteous boldness to live out loud for Jesus. Amen.
 
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/public-prayer-ban-quebec-1.7619985
 
https://youtu.be/KU5ct0iY-Ds?si=CT9gby7EvCWFZk_S Am I a Soldier of the Cross
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

August 29, 2025 -- Exodus 2:25b -- and God knew (what did He know?)

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

and God knew.  Exodus 2:25b ESV
 
What did God know?

• He knew the suffering of His people. He had multiplied them in Egypt such that they became a mighty nation, though they were still slaves, they experienced His blessing.

• He knew His people were in bondage not only physically, they were slaves in their attitude and minds as well.

• God knew they were without hope. Sure, there were faithful people among them, like Moses’ father and mother. However, this great nation descended from the mighty patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, had forgotten the wonders He’d performed.

• God knew this people had forgotten His promises, to Abraham, that He would deliver His people from Egypt.

• He knew that they could not save themselves. He had to act.

 
Why does this ancient story, of a people who lived some 3,500 years ago matter to us today? Well, the Bible was written for our instruction. The LORD our God, Who proved Himself so faithful to His people, continues to be faithful to His people today. When we read the fact that God knew His people’s pain, their helpless condition, and their inability to save themselves, we are reminded that what was true then, is true now. God knew our helpless condition. He provided His great salvation in Jesus Christ. Our sins were punished on the Person of Jesus. God the Father credited Jesus’ righteousness to all who believe in Him.
 
When you are up to your eyebrows in grief and troubles and pain, God knows. As He has acted in the past, so He will act today. He will bring His glorious salvation, help and hope. He has placed His Spirit in you, so that not one of your tear rolls down unnoticed, not a single sigh unattended. God knows.
 
Today’s prayer comes from Psalm 56.
Be gracious to me, O God, for man tramples on me; all day long an attacker oppresses me;
2 my enemies trample on me all day long, for many attack me proudly.
3 When I am afraid,  I put my trust in you.
4 In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.
    What can flesh do to me?
You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle.
    Are they not in your book?
9 Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call.
    This I know, that God is for me.
10 In God, whose word I praise,  in the Lord, whose word I praise,
11 in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.
    What can man do to me?  Psalm 56:1-4; 8-11 ESV
 
https://youtu.be/wrub6zvIb4U?si=v5-CaNVQ4zZjNdMS Nearer, My God, To Thee
 
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

August 28, 2025 -- Ephesians 6:18 -- Vital Prayer

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that tend keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.
Ephesians 6:18 ESV
 
It is always a privilege for me to lead Bible Studies “on the inside” in various prisons in my region. I am working through Ephesians using Sinclair Ferguson’s Let’s Study Ephesians. This book is a wonderful resource. In his commentary on this verse, he notes:
We are to pray at all times. Prayer is not merely the action of a moment. It is a lifestyle, the focussing of a person-to-person relationship with God. It is the expression of a life lived out in the presence of God, before the face of God, in which our constant communion with God comes to conscious expression.
Prayer then, is set within a life marked by (i) companionship and (ii) dialogue with the Lord. It is the overflow of how we live as Calvin says coram deo (in the presence of God). The wise Christian therefore adopts what we might call ‘the sanctuary principle’: keeping within the heart a place of devotion to the Lord—from which all else is excluded.
Sinclair Ferguson, Let’s Study Ephesians. Carlisle, PA: Banner of Truth Trust, reprint
2015, page 185
 
I like that picture of prayer as companionship. Every step in the day, each moment, cultivating the awareness God is nearby. His Spirit lives in you. When you think of a friend, pray for him. When you encounter a hard circumstance, remember you are walking with God, no matter where you are, in the moment ask for help knowing He is right there with you.
 
Dialogue in prayer. The Bible is God’s letter to you. Creation declares the splendor of God. The Spirit nudges you, convicts you, directs you from evil. God is speaking. Are you listening? When you realize how you have been spared, or helped, or nudged, give thanks. Prayer is the hour-by-hour interaction with the Living God. Pray is not just for set times in as part of your devotional life, it is for every part of the day and night.
 
Father in heaven, blessed be Your Name. Thank You for the gift of the Holy Spirit, Who lives in us, nudging us towards You, teaching us, making the Word vital and alive to us. Holy Spirit, through the course of the day, remind me that You are here living in me, and the day is wide open, pregnant with many opportunities for conversation with the Most High God of the Universe. Teach me, Spirit of God, to see and give thanks for the life that is mine in Christ Jesus. Amen.
 
https://youtu.be/o1FY7I5667Q?si=gnGq_INyevKqFYMI Sweet Hour of Prayer
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

August 26, 2025 -- I Peter 1:15 -- Growing in holiness

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

…as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct
I Peter 1:15 ESV
 
Holy means to be set apart, completely dedicated to God. Holy means that there is no hint of impure thoughts, actions, motivations or desires within you. Holy means one rejoices in what is excellent, good and from God. Holy, that is the only characteristic of God that is repeated three times in a row (Isaiah 6:3 & Revelation 4:8).
 
I don’t know about you, but when I read this, I realize I am not holy. Not at all. I was listening to a podcast from CCEF (Christian Counseling and Education Foundation) and the topic was progressive sanctification. Three panel members talked about progressive sanctification: that is, the work of the Holy Spirit, living in us, Who leads us in life and godliness (that last phrase comes from II Peter 1:3). The Holy Spirit applies the work of Christ in the believer so that he is made to be more like Jesus, holy. One of the panel members spoke how he often felt his life is like a yo-yo. Up and down with no real progress. Then be recalled the words of David Powlison, the former director of CCEF, who said something like this: my life may be a yo-yo, going up and down so that I don’t feel any progress in holiness, but I am in the hand of the Master, Jesus, and as I go up and down, He is climbing the stairs. What a hopeful illustration that is. How Jesus-focused it is.
 
While you may not see great strides in your growing in holiness, consider these important evidences that there is indeed progress.

• The old sin you struggled against instead of being inviting, is becoming distasteful to you. That is progress in holiness.

• Maybe you are desiring to see the victory of Jesus applied in an area of your life that before this had not been yielded to Him—that is growing in holiness Maybe have started praying for someone who you used to consider an enemy, that is progress in holiness.

• Maybe you find yourself longing for more of God, that is growing in holiness.

• Maybe you are prepared to find a mentor or a teacher, who can help you understand the Bible and life as a Christian, that is progress in holiness.

• Maybe your find yourself genuinely caring for the people God has placed in your life, so instead of being purely self-focused, you are thinking about others. That is progress in holiness.

 
Holiness grows in the fires of trials and hardships. If everything is going along fine in your life, there is little opportunity for seeking God, earnestly pouring out your heart to Him and longing for change. Pray for greater holiness; it is promised in II Peter 1:3.
 
Father in heaven, blessed be Your Name. You sent Jesus to rescue us from Your just anger against our sin. You and our Savior Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to lead us in Your holy ways. Triune God, help me to grow in holiness. Where there is progress in this, help me to see it, or when others see it in me, help me to give You the thanks and praise and let that be a motivation for me to keep growing in and longing for holiness. Amen.
 
https://youtu.be/2D4gg03f0DM?si=SiyLn-h98G1DXimO Holy, Holy, Holy
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

August 24, 2025 -- Matthew 4:1-11 -- Enduring temptations to the point of victory in Jesus

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

4 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” 4 But he answered, “It is written,
“‘Man shall not live by bread alone,
    but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple 6 and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written,
“‘He will command his angels concerning you,’ and
“‘On their hands they will bear you up,
    lest you strike your foot against a stone.’”
7 Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’” 8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” 10 Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written,
“‘You shall worship the Lord your God
    and him only shall you serve.’”
11 Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.
Matthew 4:1-11 ESV
 
Dear brothers and sisters in our Lord Jesus Christ realize the temptations of Jesus are so foreign precisely because your heart and mind and affections are used to the perversions of the world. The reason believers gather for church is to hear the word of the Lord, to recognize the standard of His glory and to realize how perverseness and compromise have infected all their thinking.

1. Recognize you are trained in compromise, something as simple as “how are you doing?” is not properly answered with “I’m good”. That is a common perversion of speech that is so widespread the correct response is now jarring. The correct response is “I am doing well”. When presented with the word of God, we are presented with a jarring response which goes against the widespread misunderstanding of what is good.

2.  The fact that Jesus withstood the temptations of Devil proves His great power as your Savior. One commentator, preaching on this passage, noted that one marathon famous to Australians goes right past his house. The runners go out by his house and then return near the end of the race past his house once again. He saw one runner who’d run out but was being driven back in a car. He’d been defeated by the race. He succumbed to the temptation to quit. He knew some of the power of temptation, but he didn’t know how bad and how powerful temptation could be, because he yielded before temptation was at its worst. Many Christians fall early into the cycle of temptation. The full might of the tempter and the awful mental, spiritual, physical, and emotional toll of temptation is unknown to them because they have not fully resisted. This makes Jesus your mighty Captain of Salvation. He Who has withstood the onslaught of the evil one to the very end, knows the wiles and schemes, the battle plan and the persistence of the enemy and He resisted Him. Therefore, He is Your shield of faith. Therefore, His is the One Name you can call upon and find salvation. When temptation hits you up, you can cry out to Jesus because He fully understands the weight of it and its undertow threatening to send you into the waves of chaos and shark-infested waters. He is the Rescuer from the present evil-age, sent by the Father to gather to Himself weak and wounded and weary sinners. Do not be ashamed to go to Him. While there is time, now is the day of salvation. Now is the time to cry out to Him and find help in your present hour of need.

3. To worship the Lord is, among other things, to give Him

   1. your time. Read the Bible. Pray. Spend time talking with other Christians about what is important. Share with your family members, in your ordinary, daily conversation, the perfections of the LORD.

   2. your money. But it is my hard-earned money. Not so fast. The commitment required of those who belong to the LORD is 10%. Why? Think of how generous He has been to you—your very life and eternity are in His hands. You are now, yes today, adopted as His beloved sons and daughters. People pour out their treasures without thinking about it for themselves. Clothes. Concerts, Games, toys. Your wallet proves your worship.

   3. your praise. Sing to the Lord. Tell others of His greatness. As you tell others about your favorite book or movie or concert, with greater enthusiasm speak to others the wonders and the blessedness of your God.

 
Prayer:
Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins;
    let them not have dominion over me!
Then I shall be blameless,
    and innocent of great transgression.
14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
    be acceptable in your sight,
    O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
Prayer is Psalm 19:13-14 ESV
 
https://youtu.be/zmt5VNnrJIM?si=hoOfNnAFtB6K7Ddl I Stand Amazed
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

August 22, 2025 -- Matthew 6:9-13 -- Decide to submit your will to the care of God as He guides you

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

 Pray then like this:
“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
10 Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
    on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread,
12 and forgive us our debts,
    as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation,
    but deliver us from evil.
Matthew 6:9-13 ESV
 
A dear friend of mine has joined me in working through the Overcomers material. Overcomers is a Christian-12-Step recovery program. It is used in Christian drug and alcohol recovery centres and is an effective tool to help men and women find freedom from life controlling issues. Often drugs and alcohol mask other issues, like gambling, anger, violence, hatred, sexual sin, over-eating, laziness. I challenged my friend to join me in the 90-days of Overcomers and dig deeper in our Christian faith. (It is my privilege to teach this material in two prisons and to rejoice as men gain freedom in Jesus and victory over besetting sins). Today, as part of the explanation of Step 2 (which is “I decide to submit my life to the care of God as he guides me”) the commitment is to intentionally and through-out the day, put Jesus in charge of your life.
 
In the explanation of this step, the Overcomers Workbook instructs students:
God did the work of making our freedom possible through Jesus. The Holy Spirit works within us, to strengthen us to establish God’s kingdom on earth. Our job is to listen and submit to God’s commands…Olympians have coaches that help them stay fit, disciplined, and ready to compete. Talent and excitement are rarely enough to produce a winner. The job of the coach is to teach the talented athlete the skills and mentality that they need to win. In the same way, when you choose to make Jesus the Lord of your life, you will be able to fight the battle for recovery AND win the battle because you are listening and learning from the best trainer!”
OVERCOMERS (WORKBOOK), Canadian Bible Society, 2022, page 46
 
Christians must continually submit themselves to Jesus and recommit themselves to Him. Our enemy, the Devil, is organized in his attempts to throw you off course and cause you to sin. The world is hostile to Jesus and exerts both subtle and overt pressures to keep you from walking in close fellowship with God. Your own fleshly desires and past sins can easily reassert themselves and lead you to sin.
 
Jesus was asked by His disciples to teach them to pray. Notice that the pattern of Jesus’ prayer. The priority in the life of the Christian is to worship God, first and worship Him only. Sins and diversions in your life result in offering inappropriate worship. For example, you are enraged, that is becoming disproportionately angry, because you are protecting your egos and worship your opinion. Or you are lazy spending time on video games or binge-watching TV when you are called to submit yourselves to Jesus and be active in serving Him.
In the very first petition of the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus taught His followers that the priority of one’s life is to praise and glorify the Father. He is worthy of receiving the sacrifice of your time, your talents, and your treasures. Closely following is the petition that the Father’s will be carried out on earth as it is in heaven. “Thy kingdom come”; that is, rule us so by Thy Word and Spirit, that we may submit ourselves more and more to Thee; preserve and increase Thy church; destroy the works of the devil, and all violence which would exalt itself against Thee” (The Heidelberg Catechism, LORD’S DAY 47, A. 123).
 
Father in heaven, You are worthy of all my time and attention and focus and love. As Jesus taught His followers to pray, so I pray, let Your will be done on earth, in Christ’s body—that is the Church—and Your will be done in my life with the same zeal and joy and glory as it is carried out in heaven by Your holy angels and the saints who are before the throne of Jesus. Spirit, lead me, because the moment I rise from this prayer I know I’ll be assaulted by temptations to swerve from such holy obedience. Such temptations will press against my commitment from within myself and strong temptations will assault me from the world and the Tempter. Thank You, Lord of Glory, for bringing me safe this far, and work out Your salvation in me, so that I will be arrive to those eternal shores where sin, death and the grave are defeated forever and I will, with full-joy, wonder, reverence and freedom worship You in spirit and in truth. Amen.
 
https://youtu.be/FSHe-kibZDg?si=ABjoVbQ60935T--S Teach Me Thy Way, O Lord
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.

August 21, 2025 -- Romans 3:9-11 Are you amazed by grace?

What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, 10 as it is written:

“None is righteous, no, not one;
11     no one understands;
    no one seeks for God.

Romans 3:9-11 ESV

Paul is writing to the people belonging to Jesus who lived in Rome. Some thought Jews were better off, perhaps less in need of grace, than were non-Jewish people (Greeks or Gentiles). Oh, Paul’s not going to let anyone get away with that kind of thinking. All are people are under God’s wrath, guilty because of their sin.

Dr. M. Kruger, Charlotte RTS, noted there are three ways this text speaks of the pervasiveness of sin. That is total depravity for all who are not “in Christ”. NB: total depravity does not mean people are as sinful as they could be, but that sin infects every area of life.

·       First actions are corrupt; that no one can fulfil God’s righteous demands as they are contained in the Law.  People do not automatically act in ways that are honorable, noble, true or holy. In fact, just the opposite is true.

·       Second, minds are corrupt. No one understands. In fact, without the life-giving, light-giving work of the Holy Spirit, people remain darkened in their sins.

·       Third, the will is corrupt. No one, of their own accord, seeks God. Sure, there are people who claim to be “spiritual”, but all they’re doing is building a spirituality based on their own desires and ego. That has nothing to do with the way of God, the Blessed One, Whose Son is the Way, the Truth and the Life.

Why mention all of this? Believers are to be taught, reminded and informed through their own studies of the Scripture of their utter wretchedness and the great grace God has poured out on them.

Amazing grace that is what the Holy Spirit applied such that sin-darkened minds are illuminated, lifelong sins and addictions are broken and the warped desires of the flesh are brought under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. In Him, one’s sins are forgiven. In Him one is made new. In Christ one is adopted as a beloved son or daughter of the Living God. By one’s union to Christ the Holy Spirit changes the desires of the heart so that action, mind and will are directed toward Jesus and this to the glory of God. Believers still sin. They still fall down. But the good news is that they don’t stay down but are lifted once again into renewed holy service to God. Whatever mess we confess is blessed by the redeeming work of Jesus. The Father has punished our mess of sin at the cross of Jesus; the Father and the Son assure our blessedness by the sealing presence of the Holy Spirit in the life of every believer.

Again, are you amazed by the grace of God? Are you thunderstruck with wonder at the grace God the Father has shown you? Are you welcoming other grace-drenched brothers and sisters in Christ? “Does your soul shout out: Who is like our God so gracious, so compassionate, so faithful in loving-kindness?!” Truly there is none, no other, like the God of Glory, rich in mercy, overflowing with compassion and faithful in showing covenant kindness to His people. Amen.

Blessed be Your Name, Father in heaven. Great and extravagant is the grace You have given in Jesus. Spirit of God fill our hearts, minds and mouths with the praise of God and so that endless thanksgiving flows from every part of our lives in acknowledgement of the new life that is ours in Christ. Spirit of the Living God, enlarge our capacity to receive others who, like us, having been rescued from the dominion of darkness and brought into the Kingdom of Light, the Kingdom of Your Son, O God, are amazed by grace. Amen.

https://youtu.be/KKo3T0j9qqo?si=cDvF6DTa_W_NxYHD Amazing Grace - My Chains are Gone

August 19, 2025 -- John 1:12 -- Adopted as sons and daughters of the Most High God

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

But to all who did receive Him [Jesus], who believed in His Name, He gave the right to become children of God…
John 1:12 ESV
 
I wonder something. Do you, dear fellow believer, understand how significant it is that through faith in Jesus Christ you are a beloved son or daughter of God? J. I. Packer, the well-known Canadian theologian wrote:
 
“You sum up the whole of New Testament religion if you describe it as the knowledge of God   as one’s holy Father. If you want to judge how well a person understands Christianity, find out how much he makes of the thought of being God’s child, and having God as his Father. If this is not the thought that prompts and controls his worship and prayers and his whole outlook on life, it means that he does not understand Christianity very well at all.

For everything that Christ taught, everything that makes the New Testament new, and better than the Old, everything that is distinctively Christian as opposed to merely Jewish, is summed up in the knowledge of the Fatherhood of God. ‘Father’ is the Christian name for God. Our understanding of Christianity cannot be better than our grasp of adoption.”
J. I. Packer, Knowing God
 
This is Jesus’ longest prayer in the Bible; it is found in John 17. It is called Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer. Read and ponder some portions of it and based on that reading, consider if what J. I. Packer said is true.
 

• “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, 2 since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. 3 And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. 17:1-3

• Righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. 26 I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.” (John 17:25-26)

 
The concluding prayer is the Lord’s Prayer as it is found in the contemporary English translation called the Message:
 
Our Father in heaven,
Reveal who you are.
Set the world right;
Do what’s best—
    as above, so below.
Keep us alive with three square meals.
Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.
Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.
You’re in charge!
You can do anything you want!
You’re ablaze in beauty! Amen.
(Matthew 6:9-13 MSG)
https://youtu.be/PCa8RxaOPW8?si=NvYG-LJODcdlhmWP Baba Yetu — the Lord’s Prayer in Swahili
 

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August 18, 2025 -- Matthew 4:1-4 -- Does God really see me?

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” 4 But he answered, “It is written,
“‘Man shall not live by bread alone,
    but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
Matthew 4:1-4 ESV
 
In a very real way, when Jesus answered the tempter’s first temptation, “If (or better since) you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread” He was making a double reference. Jesus’ beautiful response was a quotation “man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD” Deuteronomy 8:3. However, it applied equally well to what the Father had just said to Jesus, “This is My beloved Son, with Whom I am well-pleased” (Matthew 3:17). Jesus was able to withstand every temptation and stand with His Father, passing every test, because He knew in His soul that He is truly loved by the Father.
 
Think of how many trials and struggles you succumb to because you wonder, in the chaotic turmoil of your heart, when no one is looking, you wonder, “God, do You see me? Can You love me?” Those are the very questions the tempter whispers. In view of the magnificent work of Jesus, Who withstood all the devil’s lies and passed every one of the Father’s tests for faithfulness, we can be fully assured that the life, death and resurrection of Jesus has achieved for us a righteousness that can withstand the all the devil’s lies.
 
Father in heaven, sometimes the whispers of the enemy seem louder than the demonstration of Your great love given so perfectly in Jesus Christ. By Your Spirit, cause the word to be the megaphone that drowns out the enemy’s lies. Answer our soul’s questions. You are EL RAAH^, the God Who Sees Me; You so loved the world that You sent Jesus. Seal Your answers to our longing souls. Amen.
( Genesis 16:13 )
 
https://youtu.be/FX6u6ULIdmk?si=mvXOc0lrNNQVJbcN Here Is Love
 

Copyright © 2025 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.